Halal Makeup: Muslim beauty without the beast

The nearly 800 exhibitors at the In-Cosmetics expo were showing not only beauty products but also laboratory equipment and other necessities for testing and regulatory compliance.

"In the case of a company that has animal-based products and synthetic ones in the same (factory), we have to understand how they separate the production in order to avoid cross-contamination," he said.

Achcar has begun to build a client base in the cosmetics industry, with HCS charging between 1,500 and 2,000 euros ($2,250) for its scientific team to analyse products.

HCS also inspects factories to certify them as halal.

"Some of our competitors are a lot more expensive," said Achcar, adding that the certificates must be renewed every year.